It's a plot from us Australians to slow you all down

The AI says
Its primary function is to displace moisture and protect metal surfaces from corrosion, making it useful for electrical connections and fittings.
It is generally considered safe to use on plastics, paints, and other materials commonly found in electrical application

Oddly enough if I put Inox on the braids it feels like the car runs smoother and cleaner - if the car is sputtering around the track I put a drop of Inox on each braid and it comes to life.

 

I recently bought a bottle like that from Pendles here in the UK . . .

Inox MX3 Lubricant Needle Bottle 60ml

Inox MX3 Lubricant Bottle 60ml - Ideal for multiple slot car racing uses.

www.pendleslotracing.co.uk

 

Thanks for that link Hifi. By copying the exact items name from your link . . . this time I was able to find it now on Amazon.
True it was $12.99, but that's how they pad in the free shipping.

Here is the crazy reason I wanted that bottle. . . because it's small and plastic I'm paying $12.99 for insurance against breaking this glass mat my chair rolls around on! Also I'm not a fan of inhaling Inox from my spray can.

I'm trying to clear out anything that might drop and shatter this new under chair glass mat I recently bought off Amazon.
This glass might is a work of art! It does save the carpet as the wheels were starting to wear it out. But it had a ridiculous $200 price tag. First mat I bought at a local stationary store was of thick plastic and was $65. But even though it's on a very low pile rug the wheels, still leave temporary impressions in the cheap grade plastic.
I've always hated that and similar plastic mats were even worse at my old office with thicker rugs. It's like I have to hold onto the desk and pull myself out of a gulley when I move around on the chair when the wheels center into the impressions

So I said screw it, returned the plastic mat and sprung for this glass mat. There are a lot of negative reviews on Amazon on the cheaper glass mats as they can shatter into a 1,000 pieces if you drop something on them!

Last week, when I was fixing the track I luckily caught the "heavy" can of Inox in the air right over the mat when I knocked it off the layout! Then two times already I bumped the chair into this heavy Apple keyboard and mouse combo 1/2 way off the desk.
Then I figured a way to attach it to the desk by drilling two holes into the side of keyboard holder using two luggage tag wires.

I figure that small bottle will last me for years and I can always refill it. I can also use it to lubricate my electric bikes which have a lot of moving parts and refill this small bottle from a larger Inox liquid bottle.

 

My guess -- and it is a guess -- is that Inox is a solvent. Wiping it on a contaminated surface removes -- well -- gunk. Is there a residual film of Inox left behind after wiping up said gunk? Probably. Is that 'non-conductive' film impeding contact? Apparently not. It must be fluid enough to be pushed aside through mechanical contact.

Spinning theories aside, my experience is Inox is useful for cleaning braid.

 

My guess -- and it is a guess -- is that Inox is a solvent.

Not according to their website...

INOX is made using a high grade machine oil base, contains no silicon, acid, kerosene or dieselene, whereas other good quality dewatering fluid type sprays are made using a kerosene or solvent base. Is INOX safe to use? Yes. INOX has no toxic additives, and is a non-irritant if it comes in contact with the skin.

 

I've got a spray bottle and can't say it lived up to expectations regarding improved conductivity on Scaley track

 

In my experience the rougher the rails the more it improves. If you have decent quality rails to begin with you won't see as big a difference as you do on more worn rails.
Also, I think it helps corrosion form happening.
I think the fine hairs on the braids cut through the inox to pick up the power. There also might be a bit of electro- magnetism going on...

 

Actually, INOX is mostly lanolin and that is found in sheep's wool. I have used INOX for years, if you use it on your track's rails, braid or copper tape it does improve conductivity. If you put some on your car's braids it will reduce friction for a while and decrease your lap times by a smidge.
I do not use INOX as a lubricant on axle or motor shaft bearings, Superlube is better for that.

 

Actually, INOX is mostly lanolin and that is found in sheep's wool.

It isnt mostly lanolin there is a product which combine Inox oil with lanolin
"LANOX Lanolin Lubricant is a heavy duty, anti-moisture, anti-corrosion lubricant made with a high grade oil and lanolin base,"

 

There are some answers buried in this thread as to why it is particularly good for digital:

https://www.slotforum.com/threads/inox-mx3-wd40.191735/?post_id=2271021#post-2271021

Post 4 and 8

 

It works like dielectric grease does, by insulating the physical connection between the metals at the microscopic level. Why else would they tell people to smear it all over your car's battery terminals, or your headlight contacts?

I did quite a bit of searching for an explanation myself when INOX first made a splash many years ago. My understanding is, from layman to layman...
Imagine that both metals are "hairy" at that level, both the braid and the rails... 'cus they are. Without inox (or WD-40 or other things people use for this purpose) there's a lot of air between those hairs brushing up together. That air gives room for similarly small sparks. Sometimes they're big enough to see in the dark... even in the light in worst cases. In the end, the hairs of metal are easily able to touch through the INOX, making the actual electrical connection. The end and practical result for us is better conduction of electricity and better communication of digital control signals.

I'm not sure how else to explain it, but if that doesn't do it, then please just accept that it works, even though it's non-conductive.

If we could get a proper explanation into some FAQ on the forum, that'd be peachy.

 

As Greg said but also as I understand it the black tarnish that builds up on the rails is oxidation caused by the braids sparking. Any time there is a small gap between the contact surfaces the electricity will jump that gap, the higher the voltage that big the gap that can be jumped, just look how far a static charge can jump. The very fine fluid insulating layer formed by Inox is moved by the lower braid strands and they make good contact with the rails but the strands just missing the rails are now insulated by a fluid layer and there is no air gap to jump and cause oxidation. The low surface tension of the Inox allows it to flow back in to the gaps made by the braid strands. The same is also true for your braids. The oxidation layer reduces conductivity and also tends to increase any arcing, most of which is invisible to the good old Mk1 eyeball. At the worst level the electrical arcing can damage the rails and cause pits in the surface with will hold dirt and if deep enough will cause the steel underneath to start rusting. One advantage of stainless steel rails is that even if they pit you shouldn't get any rusting.

If you keep your rails and braids clean then you may not see any performance boost from using Inox but it should still reduce the amount of cleaning required.

 

As Greg said but also as I understand it the black tarnish that builds up on the rails is oxidation caused by the braids sparking. Any time there is a small gap between the contact surfaces the electricity will jump that gap, the higher the voltage that big the gap that can be jumped, just look how far a static charge can jump. The very fine fluid insulating layer formed by Inox is moved by the lower braid strands and they make good contact with the rails but the strands just missing the rails are now insulated by a fluid layer and there is no air gap to jump and cause oxidation. The low surface tension of the Inox allows it to flow back in to the gaps made by the braid strands. The same is also true for your braids. The oxidation layer reduces conductivity and also tends to increase any arcing, most of which is invisible to the good old Mk1 eyeball. At the worst level the electrical arcing can damage the rails and cause pits in the surface with will hold dirt and if deep enough will cause the steel underneath to start rusting. One advantage of stainless steel rails is that even if they pit you shouldn't get any rusting.

If you keep your rails and braids clean then you may not see any performance boost from using Inox but it should still reduce the amount of cleaning required.

Makes sense Keith. I sure do get a lot of black on the braid part that touches the track and black when I wipe down the rails periodically. And it's just me running laps on my home track. Hopefully the use Inox can cut down on this. For the braids I use a small toothbrush moistened with lighter fluid.
The small bottle of Inox I ordered today will make it easier to put a drop on the braids after cleaning with lighter fluid.
As it is now, I have to spray a touch of Inox onto a microfiber or a piece of paper towel and dab it onto the braid.

 

Drink it, it is full of vitamin D3. Good for your health!

 

As I understand it Inox does not improve conductivity - conductivity remains unchanged. What the non-conductive Inox does is allow the braids to make direct contact with the rails but suppresses the sparks around the contact points. Scalextric digital relies on a clean digital signal through the rails - sparks disrupt the packets of data and if a chip cannot read the instructions it will cut power to the motor. These packets are transmitted dozens of times per second. A spark will cause a momentary cut in power to the motor - hence the stuttering.

No sparks means smooth digital racing. Inox also helps the braids slide a little but any oil will do that. Where Inox comes into its own is its spark suppression qualities.

 

I use it between heats on my 1/24th scale flexi-chassis cars. The spark suppression definitely improves performance ….for about 5 laps. That power difference can mean a 1/2 lap advantage just from one application. And for digital on Scalextric track I use it for qualli. Sometimes it even gives too much power, requiring a driving style change.

Mike M.

 

It's just pixie dust, don't try to analyse it, just use it!

 

INOX MX3 comparison.

https://www.slotforum.com/threads/inox-mx3-some-testing.166562/

 

I have a small test track for HO scale model trains. I was having a terrible time with the constant lighting and sound shutting down, along with the circuit breaker tripping for no known reason. Cleaning rails with a ROCO track cleaning block didn’t help. I noticed my bottle of INOX that I had purchased from Slot Car Corner. What the heck…I grabbed a bit of paper towel, doused it with INOX, and proceeded to wipe down the rails. A lot of black crud was deposited on the paper towel.
All of the issues I had been having have disappeared. They have not reappeared.
I have also used the same treatment on my N and HOm scale tracks.
IMO the INOX eliminated “microscopic” arcing that was causing the mayhem.
At $7.49 a bottle, it’s not going to break anyone’s bank.

 

Yeah, the MRR guys discovered it not long ago. You can find a few videos of them showing the benefits. Just like for digital slot cars.

And we all have @Billy_Cart to thank for going into his local hardware store and asking a gent for some ideas, taking the risk and trying it, and then sharing his find with the world.

 

I’ve found it improved the connection on many things including microphone level audio signals down to say 20mV or less. Resolved poor connections in a pinch in liquid damaged computer equipment involving tiny flex cable connections, it works better, is more readily available and the effect lasts longer than expensive contact cleaner products. Not saying it’s a permanent fix for those kind of problems but it’s an amazing product when used for these applications. It’s non conductive and I’m not going to pretend to know why but similar effect can be achieved from cleaning contacts with isopropyl alchohol but the inox just seems to be more robust and lasts longer. Pehaps the explanation about the sparks/dielectric, perhaps oxides have something to do with it but it’s something happening at an atomic or microscopic level for sure.

 

It is working well for me on H0 as well. A portion of my cars run with braids. Track stays bright and shiny for a good long time.

 

When I use Inox I have the spray bottle but I've never sprayed it, the tube inside the bottle makes a good applicator for braids.

 

I'll reiterate that less is more. It's easy to overdo it. I would suggest that, after applying it to the rails and then removing excess with a dry paper towel that you do NOT do anything else until symptoms reappear. Hopefully no more clips are floating around below your track to make it seem like there's a problem again. Do NOT apply a drop to each braid on every car as a matter of course, and certainly don't do that with any kind of regularity. Only re-do the rails if they get cleaned off with a solvent. Only add drops to braids when the car is having problems that are not corrected by proper braid formation and confirming that all other possible problems are addressed.

 

I agree with Greg. I don't think there is a need to slather every car's braids with Inox.
I keep a few cars dedicated as track maintenance vehicles that make routine laps with treated braid pickups. They are part of my track cleaning and maintenance routine. I think of it as more of a rail treatment than a braid treatment.

 

I agree with Greg. I don't think there is a need to slather every car's braids with Inox.
I keep a few cars dedicated as track maintenance vehicles that make routine laps with treated braid pickups. They are part of my track cleaning and maintenance routine. I think of it as more of a rail treatment than a braid treatment.

This was my thought too. If I put a drop of Inox on each braid of every car I own and since it's an oil wouldn't the braids just be tracking a build up of excess Inox onto the rails?

Greg's post in #25 makes sense as to the better way to use Inox.

 

I was always under the impression that Inox was for the track, not the car. Two drops on the car, run it around a little and forget until it’s needed again.

On rail based digital protocols (Carrera, SSD), it does make a difference.

 

Just take your track to a sheep herder and rub it on their wool... (the sheeps', no the herder's!)

 

As with most oils, I've found Inox makes a good tyre treatment.

 

Has anyone else tried this?
Mike

 

A long time ago I made a circle of plastic track, hooked it up to a power supply, set a car on it and turned out the lights.

You can learn a lot about how well your contacts are working by watching the sparks in the dark. Short version: Sparks mean you have intermittent contact -- bad. It is possible to get such good contact you don't see sparks. Work on that.